Overscheduled?

Relaxing. This is a busy guy!

I think that most moms are busy. Moms of children with special needs are often busier than most. Tom has seven to eight therapy appointments a week and goes to a preschool readiness group weekly also. Then we have our doctors appointments in between. Thank god his Early Intervention therapists come to our house or we would be on the go all day, every day.

I often see parents saying their children are too over-scheduled with therapy so they decide to cut some out. I just can't do that. Not that I haven't been tempted! Sure, there are times that I want to roll over and go back to sleep instead of waking up so we can be ready and fed before the therapist gets to our house in the morning.

Why can't I dial back all these therapy appointments? Because they work! Tom is progressing. I see Tom doing new things all the time that are a direct result of the things he learned in therapy.

Just last week his OT at the Children's Institute worked with Thomas to grab hold of a string and pull a musical toy along behind him. Then this weekend my mom was walking with Tom in the yard and they found a toy car. He picked up the toy car and carried it all the way into the house. Why is that a big deal? Because he never used to carry anything for longer than five seconds if he wasn't actively playing with it. He just would not carry anything. This is a useful and practical skill that he learned in OT.

Pulling his musical car by a string.

And sometimes I'm not at my most resourceful and enthusiastic. Sometimes I don't have the energy to get down on the floor and play roll the car. Playing with Tom means working hard to engage him. So it can really be helpful when a therapist comes in to see Tom and takes over for an hour. I can have a cup of tea and check my email while they work together. Right now I can hear Tom having vision therapy in the other room as I write this blog post. I often stay in the room to listen and observe but I also try to let them work without me. If Tom knows I'm there he is more apt to whine and lose interest. He does much better when he thinks I'm not in the room:)

I am very lucky that Tom has a great relationship with all his therapists. They come over ready to work and genuinely excited to see Tommy, which I love! So yes, we are very busy and sometimes it's tiring, but the benefits are too great for me to cut back on anything. Tom enjoys the time he spends with his therapists and that makes it an easy choice for me as well.

Things to remember when working with therapists:

• Give it a chance! It takes time for your child to get used to a new therapist and it takes time for the therapist to understand your child. 

• A different approach can be great! Tom has two occupational therapists (one Early Intervention and one at the Children's Institute); they do completely different things and have totally different approaches. They are both wonderful and he is getting a lot from each style of therapy. One therapist is a more rough, and boy, did it challenge Thomas at first! 

• If you really don't see any progress and you don't think your child is being challenged then change therapists. All you have to do is call your program coordinator and say you don't think your current therapist is working out and you want to be re-assigned. It's that simple. Don't let yourself feel guilty. You have to do what is best for your child and sometimes that means making hard decisions. 

• Maybe your child has grown and changed but the therapy has not? This can be a problem. Some therapists are great with babies but they don't adapt their therapy for the child as they grow.  Another valid reason to consider a change or at least a discussion with your child's therapist.

Tons of therapy made this picture possible!